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2004-10-04 - 8:48 p.m.

My girlfriend needed her computer fixed. My friend who plays guitar in my band, Sammy, tried to fix it. He's good at fixing hardware. He couldn't this time so we went to Tekserve. I stayed in the car so we wouldn't get a ticket and in the rearview mirror I saw some guy hanging around her and felt weird about it so I got out to make sure she was okay. I'm okay at feigning a certain bouncer-like assholeness if I have to but it's like playing stare- I can't hold it for very long. When I got out I noticed it was this old man, about 70, who was shitfaced and trying to walk across 23rd street. My girlfriend was trying to talk him out of crossing the street and the guy sweeping said "he does this every day." The old guy looks like he's got this thing down so I get back in the car and then I hear someone yell and then I hear the guy fall to the ground. It has to hurt if I can hear it from inside a Volvo. So, I get out and this guy has fallen in the street against the car. It was probably stupid of me to grab him because he might have broken something important but he was in the street. I lifted him from under his arms and carried him with the help of another homeless guy onto the sidewalk. I looked down at my shirt and his head and noticed he whacked himself pretty good due to the blood. The guy sweeping called 911 and me and other guy sat with him til he regained consciousness.
"This guy owes me a beer," he said.
"Maybe you shouldn't drink," said the sweeper.
I kept holding the guy until the ambulance showed up and realized he might be more comfortable on the church steps. So, we lifted him and began towards the steps when this guy came up and told us he couldn't sit there.
I'm thinking, "Who the fuck are you?" You can't belong to this church and tell me I can't let this old man sit on the steps. I don't care if he is drunk. He's human. Treat him like a human. Asshole. And maybe you should reread the gospels. I'm nowhere near being a saint but at least I know how to treat an old man who isn't hurting anyone. With a little respect. Sure he's drunk. Be a fucking man about it and let him sit down. He's old. What a dick that no-sit guy was. I hate judging people but that guy was fucking clueless on being cool. I should have just sat him down on the steps but I just sat him in front of Tekserve instead.
A few months ago, I saw a guy collapse in the stairwell for the Lorimer stop and went into Kellogg's Diner to get them to call 911 and they came out to rubberneck rather than help. Assholes. It's one thing to panic and not help but it's another to gawk and not help. Most people are cool in this city but sometimes I just don't get it.
The FDNY came, the NYPD came, and the EMT's took good care of him.

 

 

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